Angels Of Death Vol. 1 – 3 Review

I have been starving for horror manga as of late and Magical Girl Raising Project was about as close as I’ve gotten recently. Angels of Death caught my eye with character designs that reminded me of, (the poorly plotted), Umineko and the plot seemed simple enough. But is this a title worth checking out? Rachel Duncan finds herself trapped in a building that she has no recollection of entering. Not long passes before an announcement she hears on an intercom saying she is a sacrifice and up free game to be killed. With an elevator that only goes up and each floor has a new person out to kill her, will Rachel survive? Angel of Death isn’t quite the horror story I desired but is certainly an entertaining read. Moments with Rachel and Isaac tend to be repeating the same phrases over and over…and over…and over again until a new enemy shows up to be defeated. The first to show up is a man with a dark fascination for eyes and the third seems to be overall demented without any real backstory but Volume 2 shines the brightest. The darkest chapters the series has to offer thus far pits Rachel and Isaac against a young boy who claims to have fallen in love with Rachel at first sight. Seeming innocent in his efforts doesn’t last long at all as he begins to detail his desire to end her life. The best part of this volume is that we get a glimpse into the child’s past and it’s packed with the kind of shit you’d see in Higurashi: When They Cry. Volume 2 is the only reason I held out hope for the series because otherwise it feels meaningless. When Rachel and Isaac aren’t planning out how to escape a floor, Rachel keeps asking Isaac to hold his promise to kill her or mentions it in some fashion. In Volume 3 though, Isaac mentions this fact and perhaps there’s something sinister behind those constant conversations. My theory is that Rachel is trapped in some kind of hell or even a prison for a crime she cannot remember. It’s probably more of the latter than the former but regardless, the dialogue between the two is entirely too repetitive. Angels of Death needs some work but manages to not be a complete bore. Ideally, the dynamic changes going forward since Volume 3 ends with a chance to fully flesh out Issac.

2 comments on “Angels Of Death Vol. 1 – 3 Review”

I think the story seems pretty interesting. I’ve gotta agree that when I saw the preview for this series, it seemed more like a horror manga than an action manga, but the premise of the story is still really interesting so I’m not that mad. I’ve been pushing reading it off, but now that I know it’s not that bad, I’ll definitely have to give it a try.
Freak-Quency is another series that I ran into recently that initially gave off a horror vibe, but was actually also an action series. This one involves creatures from a banned RPG being transferred into the real world, where players have life threatening battles. The MC of the series gets sucked into the game because she’s looking for her brother who disappeared while playing it. Although it’s not what I expected, it’s actually become one of my favorite new series. I highly recommend checking it out if you don’t mind more action manga.